The humans were put in a big cage together before they were left hanging over a massive pit of lava along with numerous other cages that accompanied the travelers.

"Where are we?" Luigi said shakily, holding onto the bars and looking around.

A small, blue and glowing creature was laughing and looking down at the humans. "Home."

"Pay him no heed," a penguin who looked like a penguin king said who was stuck with other ones of his kind. "He's cute but he's..." he whistled and made an expression that indicated insanity.

"In the insane world, it is the sane who's called crazy," the blue creature grabbed a pinwheel and blew on it. The wheel fell out of its stick.

"How long have you guys been in here?" Luigi asked the prisoners.

"Time, like hope, is an illusion," the blue creature said.

"Please!" The penguin king said in exasperation. "We are depressed enough!"

"There must be a way out of here," Noëlle said.

"There's no escape," the glowing creature spoke again. "The only hope is the sweet relief of death."

All of the prisoners groaned.

"You've got to be kidding me," the penguin king said.

Luigi and Noëlle held onto the bars and looked down at the lava, "Well, I'm glad we're not in separate cages," she said as she sat down on the hard floor.

"So that we don't feel alone?" Luigi said.

"Yes, and whenever you get scared, I can give you a hug."

He smiled. "I think I could use a hug right now."

Noëlle opened her arms and they embraced for a short moment before letting go. She let out a yawn.

"Someone's tired," he said playfully.

"Very funny," she chuckled. "But I think I need some rest. How long do you think we've been gone for, anyway?"

"Maybe a day or two," he said.

Noëlle made herself comfortable lying down, using her hoodie as a pillow, revealing her green and black shirt. She took off her white sneakers since she felt warm by the place they were in now.

"What are you going to do now?"

"Just sit and think, I guess. I'll keep watch if something happens," Luigi replied.

"Thanks. See ya later," Noëlle said before closing her eyes and losing consciousness.

"Ciao," he said.

LATER

Noëlle was in a dark space and saw a bed on the horizon. She approached it, opened the blanket, and was horrified by what she saw. It was her father's skeleton. Then two figures zoomed past her like superhumans. She took a look and saw it was the Mario brothers.

"Hey, guys! Wait up!"

When she caught up to them, she was shocked to see that they were not human but bony dino versions of themselves. This made her yell.

"Hey, hey," she heard a soft, gentle voice. "Noëlle, wake up," Luigi said, his hand on her arm.

She gasped as she awakened. She and Luigi were still trapped in their cage. She sighed; grateful it was just a dream. No, more like a nightmare.

"Are you okay?" the youngest brother asked, concerned.

"I am now," she said. "Sorry, it was just a crazy bad dream."

"It's okay. Do you still need more rest?"

"Yeah," she lay down again. "This time, I should try creating my own dreams."

"I'll keep watch again," Luigi said.

"Thanks. I'll do the same when it's your turn to rest."

He grinned as she closed her eyes again.

ABOUT 30 MINUTES LATER

Luigi was watching the sleeping beauty. "Noëlle is so cool. She's kind, funny, smart, caring, and spirited. How come I never noticed that back at school? Destiny del Vecchio from high school never once looked at me the way I always looked at her. Noëlle is the first girl to tell me she liked me back then. She seems to still like me now and I-"

He widened his eyes in realization. Throughout their adventure, Noëlle was there trying to help him and Mario get back to Brooklyn after the three of them were magically transported to this world, she fought against the bony dinos to help Luigi, comfort him and make him laugh whenever he was upset, and she tried to protect him from Bowser even when she was tied up. His heart began to beat thunderously. Luigi glanced at Noëlle with a loving smile. "And I like her. I really like this incredible person in front of me."

Meanwhile, Noëlle was sleeping with a much better dream. She dreamt that she was out in nature walks with Luigi, bowling with him and Mario, going to the movies with Luigi while holding hands, playing in a swimming pool with him, and finally a romantic dinner followed by a dance where they almost kissed-

She awoke when she heard an echoing rumble. Luckily everything looked okay, and not on the brink of destruction. She noticed Luigi was asleep against the bars and grinned at how adorable he looked during his nap.

"My turn to watch over and look out for any danger," she whispered, sitting up and putting her shoes back on before observing all their surroundings and making sure Luigi was having a good sleep and not having any nightmares.